The present invention refers to a hyperbranched dendritic polyether obtainable in a process comprising the step of thermally initiated cationic ring-opening of at least one oxetane having at least two reactive groups of which at least one is an oxetane group. In a further aspect, the present invention refers to a process for the manufacture of said hyperbranched dendritic polyether.
Macromolecular architecture has received increasing attention during the last decade. The interest is governed by the realisation that new and/or improved material properties can be obtained by altering the architecture of the polymers. Especially dendritic polymers, that is dendrimers and hyperbranched polymers, have received considerable attention in this context. The most characteristic features of dendritic polymers in contrast to linear polymers or ordinarily and randomly branched polymers are the absence of entanglements and the low viscosity in bulk.
Dendritic polymers are based on for instance ABx monomers and are highly branched macromolecules with a multitude of end-groups. Dendrimers are monodisperse, exact structures where all branch points are utilised. Due to their well defined structure dendrimers are tedious and often expensive to synthesise. Hyperbranched polymers are polydisperse and some of the ABx monomers are incorporated in a linear fashion, resulting in a less well defined architecture. Hyperbranched polymers are less complicated to synthesise and, therefore, less expensive which makes them more attractive than dendrimers for large-scale applications.
Conceptually, condensation monomers of ABx type are the easiest to identify and a wide variety of such monomers have also been demonstrated to yield hyperbranched and dendritic polymers. Various dendritic, including dendrimers, polyesters and processes for production thereof are disclosed in the Swedish patents 468 771 and 503 342. Polyether dendrimers produced using complex and expensive protective chemistry are discussed but not further evaluated or prepared in the European patent 115 771. More recently, vinyl monomers, bearing both an initiating and a propagating function has been utilised to result in hyperbranched or dendritic polymers, both via cationic and free radical proceduresxe2x80x94J. M. J. Frxc3xa9chet et al., Science, 269, 1080 (1995), C. J. Hawker, et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 117, 10763 (1995) and S. G. Gaynor et al., Macromolecules 29, 1979 (1996).
So far no successful ring-opening polymerisation resulting in hyperbranched dendritic polyethers, including dendrimers, has been reported. The ring-opening polymerisation of 3-hydroxymethyl-3-methyl oxetane under basic conditions was reported by Y. H. Kim in J. Polym. Sci. Part A: Polym. Chem., 36, 1685 (1998). However, only a low molar mass polyether was obtained.
The present invention provides quite unexpectedly hyperbranched dendritic polyethers by means of cationic ring-opening polymerisation of at least one oxetane. The present invention accordingly provides hyperbranched dendritic polyethers readily synthesised in bulk. The hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention has like most of the well-known hyperbranched dendritic polyesters terminal hydroxyl groups and can accordingly like said polyesters be further processed to yield hyperbranched dendritic polymers having desired end-groups and tailor-made final properties. Hyperbranched dendritic polyethers are, as polyethers normally are, less susceptible to hydrolysis and have a slightly more flexible main chain than corresponding polyesters, which properties imply utilisation, and pending improved properties, in application areas wherein esters are less suitable. A further advantage is that the hyperbranched polyether of the present invention in most cases easily can be purified by simple precipitation.
The hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention is accordingly obtainable in a process comprising the step of thermally initiated cationic ring-opening polymerisation of at least one oxetane having at least two reactive groups of which at least one is an oxetane group. The thermally initiated ring-opening polymerisation is performed using an effective amount of at least one initiator, such as an onium salt, a Lewis acid and/or a Brxc3x8nsted acid. Terminal groups or functions in obtained hyperbranched dendritic polyether are normally and substantially hydroxyl groups. The hyperbranched dendritic polyether can also optionally comprise one or more other monomeric or polymeric molecules. The hyperbranched dendritic polyether can furthermore and optionally be a further processed polymer, such as further chain extended, chain terminated and/or functionalised.
The hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention is as disclosed above obtainable in a process comprising said oxetane, whereby the oxetane for instance may be part of a reaction mixture comprising said oxetane in an amount, such as at least 1%, sufficient to provide branching. The oxetane may have two or more oxetane groups or one or more oxetane groups and one or more hydroxyl groups and similar or other suitable combinations of groups and functions. A reaction mixture comprising said oxetane can in addition thereto comprise at least one additional oxetane having at least one oxetane group and optionally one or more other reactive groups and/or at least one alcohol, epoxide, anhydride, tetrahydrofuran and/or lactone.
Said at least one oxetane having said at least two reactive groups is in preferred embodiments of the present invention a compound of the general formula 
wherein R1 is alkyl, alkyloxy, alkyloxyalkyl, aryloxyalkyl, hydroxyalkyl, hydroxyalkyloxy, aryl, aryloxy, hydroxyaryl or hydroxyaryloxy, R2 is hydroxyalkyl, hydroxyalkyloxy, hydroxyaryl or hydroxyaryloxy, and wherein each R3 independently is hydrogen, alkyl, alkyloxy, alkyloxyalkyl, aryloxyalkyl, hydroxyalkyl, hydroxyalkyloxy, aryl, aryloxy, hydroxyaryl or hydroxyaryloxy. Said alkyl is preferably linear or branched alkanyl or alkenyl having 1 to 24, such as 3 to 24, 1 to 12, 4 to 12 or 2 to 8, carbon atoms. The oxetane is in especially preferred embodiments an oxetane of a 2-alkyl-2-hydroxyalkyl-1,3-propanediol, a 2,2-di(hydroxyalkyl)-1,3-propanediol, a 2-alkyl-2-hydroxyalkyloxy-1,3-propanediol, a 2,2-di(hydroxyalkyloxy)-1,3-propanediol or a dimer, trimer or polymer of said 1,3-propanediol, wherein said alkyl independently and preferably is linear or branched alkanyl or alkenyl having 3 to 24, such as 4 to 12, carbon atoms. The most preferred embodiments of the present invention comprises an oxetane of a tri and polyalcohol, such as trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane, pentaerythritol, ditrimethylolethane, ditrimethylolpropane or dipentaerythritol.
The initiator is preferably at least one onium salt, such as a sulphonium, oxonium and/or iodonium salt, and can be exemplified by a compound of structural formula 
wherein X is a halogen containing group. The initiator according to said formula can be exemplified by benzyltetramethylenesulphonium hexafluoroantimonate (Xxe2x88x92 is SbF6xe2x88x92), benzyltetramethylenesulphonium hexafluorophosphate and benzyltetramethylenesulphonium trifluoromethanesulphonate. The initiation proceeds in such a case by a reversible generation of the benzyl cation which is stabilised by the non-nucleophilic anion. The benzyl cation is responsible for the initiation of the polymerisation by addition to the nucleophilic oxetane ring.
Further initiators can be found among Lewis acids, such as BF3, AlCl3, FeCl3 and/or SnCl4, and Brxc3x8nsted acids such as naphthalene sulphonic acid, para-toluene sulphonic acid, methane sulphonic acid, trifluoromethane sulphonic acid, trifluoroacetic acid, sulphuric acid and/or phosphoric acid.
Embodiments of the hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention include species being further processed, whereby at least one spacing or branching monomeric or polymeric chain extender is added to at least one terminal hydroxyl group in said polyether. Spacing or branching chain extenders include in various embodiments of the present invention for instance hydroxyfunctional carboxylic acids, having at least one hydroxyl group and at least one carboxyl group, such as 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)propanoic acid, 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)butanoic acid, 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)pentanoic acid, 2,3-dihydroxypropanoic acid, hydroxypentanoic acid, hydroxypropanoic acid or 2,2-dimethyl-3-hydroxypropanoic acid as well as mixtures and polymers comprising one or more of said acids. Further suitable chain extenders are for instance lactones, which preferably are exemplified by xcex2-propiolactone, xcex3-butyrolactone, xcex4-valerolactone, xcex5-caprolactone and/or xcex6-enantholactone, including mixtures and/or polymers of said lactones.
Further embodiments of the hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention include species being further or yet further process, whereby at least one monomeric or polymeric chain stopper for instance having at least one carboxyl, anhydride, epoxide and/or isocyanate group is added to at least one terminal hydroxyl group or to at least one optional chain extender. Suitable chain stoppers can for instance be selected from the group consisting of saturated or unsaturated monofunctional carboxylic acids or, where applicable, anhydrides thereof, diisocyanates, oligomers and adducts of diisocyanates, glycidyl esters and ethers, epoxidised monocarboxylic acids and corresponding triglycerides, and/or esters of at least one di, tri or polyfunctional carboxylic acid, which esters have at least one carboxyl group, preferably a single carboxyl group. Preferred chain stoppers can be exemplified by lauric acid, linseed fatty acid, soybean fatty acid, tall oil fatty acid, dehydrated castor fatty acid, crotonic acid, capric acid, caprylic acid, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, benzoic acid, para-tert.butylbenzoic acid, abietic acid, sorbinic acid, epoxidised soybean fatty acid, trimethylolpropane diallyl ether maleate, toluene-2,4-diisocyanate, toluene-2,6-diisocyanate, hexamethylene diisocyanate and isophorone diisocyanate.
Yet further embodiments of the hyperbranched dendritic polyether of the present invention include species being further or yet further process by means of epoxidation, allylation, acrylation and/or grafting of at least one terminal hydroxyl group, at least one optional chain extender and/or at least one optional chain stopper. Epoxidation is suitably performed as a reaction with at least one epihalohydrin, such as epichlorohydrin, or as a reaction with at least one oxidising agent selected from the group consisting of peroxy acids or anhydrides and haloperoxy acids or anhydrides, such as peroxyformic acid, peroxyacetic acid, peroxybenzoic acid, m-chloroperoxybenzoic acid, trifluoroperoxyacetic acid or mixtures thereof or therewith. Allylation is preferably performed as a reaction with at least one allylhalide, such as allylchloride or allylbromide, and acrylation as a reaction with methacrylic, acrylic and/or crotonic acid or corresponding anhydride or halide or alternatively as a reaction with an ester or a polyester of any of said acids.
The hyperbranched dendritic polyether according to the present inventions is suitably and advantageously used as a product per se or as a component, raw material, in the manufacture of a large number of resinous and polymeric products.
In a further aspect, the present invention refers to a process for manufacture of a hyperbranched dendritic polyether, which optionally is further processed such as further chain extended, chain terminated and/or functionalised. The process comprises the step of thermally initiated ring-opening polymerisation of at least one oxetane having at least two reactive groups of which at least one is an oxetane group. The ring-opening polymerisation is performed in the presence of an effective amount of at least one initiator. Employed oxetane and initiator are in various embodiments as disclosed above. The process furthermore optionally comprises the steps of chain extension, chain termination and/or functionalisation. These steps of the present invention employ monomeric and polymeric materials as disclosed above.
The process of the present invention thus comprises at least one oxetane having at least two reactive groups of which at least one is an oxetane group or a mixture comprising said oxetane in an amount, such as at least 1%, sufficient to provide branching. Said oxetane may for instance have two or more oxetane groups, one or more oxetane groups and one or more other reactive groups, such as hydroxyl one or more hydroxyl group. A reaction mixture comprising said oxetane can in addition thereto comprise at least one additional oxetane having at least one oxetane group and optionally one or more other reactive groups and/or at least one alcohol, epoxide, anhydride, tetrahydrofuran and/or lactone.
Additional monomeric or polymeric molecules present in a reaction mixture comprising said oxetane having at least two reactive groups are for example suitably found among aliphatic, cycloaliphatic and aromatic mono, di, tri or polyalcohols, such as ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, tripropylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, neopentyl glycol, dimethylolpropane, glycerol, trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane, pentaerythritol, ditrimethylolethane, ditrimethylolpropane, anhydroennea-heptitol, dipentaerythritol, sorbitol or mannitol. Further suitable embodiments of said molecules include adducts of said alcohols, such as hydroxysubstituted allyl ethers, alkoxylates and acetals. Hydroxysubstituted allyl ethers can be exemplified by glycerol monoallyl ether, glycerol diallyl ether, trimethylolpropane monoallyl ether, trimethylolpropane diallyl ether, pentaerythritol monoallyl ether, pentaerythritol diallyl ether and pentaerythritol triallyl ether. Alkoxylates can be exemplified by reaction products of glycerol, trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane or pentaerythritol and at least one alkylene oxide, such as ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, butylene oxide, phenylethylene oxide or mixtures thereof. These reaction products include for instance trimethylolpropane triethoxylate, trimethylolpropane tripropoxylate, pentaerythritol triethoxylate and pentaerythritol pentaethoxylate. Acetals are suitably exemplified by 1,3-dioxane alcohols and 1,3-dioxolane alcohols, such as 4-hydroxymethyl-1,3-dioxolane, 5-methyl-5-hydroxymethyl-1,3-dioxane, 5-ethyl-5-hydroxymethyl-1,3-dioxane and/or 5,5-dihydroxymethyl-1,3-dioxane. Molecules one or more epoxide groups include for instance mono, di, tri or polyfunctional epoxides, such as condensation products between at least one phenol and at least one aldehyde, oligomers of such condensation products, glycidyl esters and ethers as well as mono, di and triglycidyl substituted isocyanurates. Anhydrides are found among anhydrides of mono, di, tri and polyfunctional carboxylic acids. A lactones is advantageously selected from the group consisting of xcex2-propiolactone, xcex3-butyrolactone, xcex4-valerolactone, xcex5-caprolactone and/or xcex6-enantholactone.
Without further elaboration, it is believed that one skilled in the art can, using the preceding description, utilise the present invention to its fullest extent. These and other objects and the attendant advantages will be more fully understood from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with specific embodiments, which are to be construed as merely illustrative and not limitative of the remainder of the disclosure in any way whatsoever. Example 1 illustrates preparation of a hyperbranched dendritic polyether by means of cationic ring-opening polymerisation of an oxetane having one oxetane group and one hydroxyl group. Example 2 illustrates further chain extension/termination by addition of a lactone.